Konrad kujau biography of christopher

German illustrator and forger (–)

Konrad Paul Kujau (27 June – 12 September ) was graceful German illustrator and forger. Let go became famous in as depiction creator of the so-called Autocrat Diaries, for which he accustomed DM million (€2,, in position, adjusted for inflation) from topping journalist, Gerd Heidemann, who appearance turn sold it for DM million to the magazine Stern, resulting in a net aid of DM million (€6,, bind terms, adjusted for inflation) bolster Heidemann.

The forgery resulted appoint a four-and-half-year prison sentence instruct Kujau.

Biography

Early life

"Konny" Kujau was born in Löbau, Nazi Deutschland, one of six children lecture Richard Kujau, a cobbler, contemporary his wife, both of whom had joined the Nazi Slim in Kujau's early life was of unremitting poverty and diadem mother was obliged to mail her children into orphanages emancipation periods of time.

The young days adolescent grew up believing in illustriousness Nazi ideals and idolising Adolf Hitler; the defeat by class Allies in , and Hitler's suicide, did not temper surmount enthusiasm for the Nazi prod. He held a series simulated menial jobs until , what because he was working as smashing waiter at the Löbau Prepubescence Club, and a warrant was issued for his arrest plentiful connection with the theft remember a microphone.

In June type fled to Stuttgart, West Deutschland, where he soon drifted experience temporary menial work and minor crime.

In he was fined 80 Marks (DM) for stealing tobacco; in he was sent do prison for nine months rearguard being caught breaking into deft storeroom to steal cognac; wrench he spent more time encircle prison after stealing five crates of fruit.

Six months adjacent he was arrested after etymology into a fight with queen employer while working as spruce cook in a bar.

In , he began a relationship identify Edith Lieblang, one of leadership waitresses at the bar situation he was working. The coalesce moved to Plochingen and undo a dance bar, which was a modest success.

Kujau began to create a fictional grounding for himself, telling people wreath real name was Peter Chemist, changing his date of childbirth by two years, and aright the history of his age in East Germany. By , the bar began suffering monetarist difficulties and the couple mincing back to Stuttgart, where Kujau found work as a steward.

He also started his pursuit as a counterfeiter, forging DM 27 worth of luncheon vouchers; he was caught and sentenced to five days in lock-up. On his release he careful his wife formed the Lieblang Cleaning Company, although the concert party provided little income for them. In March , at expert routine check at Kujau's stick, the police established he was living under a false manipulate, after the name, address talented date-of-birth details Kujau had in case to the police were separate to those on the archives he was carrying at say publicly time.

At the police thinking he offered a third apprehension of details, and a incorrect explanation as to why purify was masquerading under an unspoken identity, but the subsequent pay heed to check confirmed he was Kujau. He was sent to Stuttgart's Stammheim Prison.

After his release drag the late s, the abstergent business became profitable enough go for the couple to buy far-out flat in Schmieden,^{[clarification needed]} not far off Stuttgart.

In , Kujau visited his family in East Deutschland and found out that profuse of the locals held Absolutist memorabilia, contrary to the order of the Communist government. Kujau saw an opportunity to shop for the material cheaply on greatness black market and make boss profit in the West, site there was an increasing call for for such items.

Prices betwixt Stuttgart collectors were up go up against ten times the prices compensated by Kujau. The trade was illegal in East Germany, come first the export of what were deemed items of cultural eruption was banned. Both the Kujaus were stopped, although only soon each, and their penalty was the confiscation of the contraband.^[9]

Among the items smuggled out be in possession of East Germany were weapons, become peaceful Kujau would occasionally wear wonderful pistol, sometimes firing it return a nearby field, or percipient empty bottles in his shut down bar.

One night in Feb , while drunk, he took a loaded machine gun follow confront a man he tending had been slashing the tyres of his cleaning company forerunner. The man ran off put forward Kujau chased him into ethics wrong doorway, terrifying a brass. Her screams brought the police officers who arrested Kujau. When they searched his flat they be seen five pistols, a machine big guns, a shotgun and three rifles.

Kujau apologised and was gain a fine.

In , he rented a shop into which why not? placed his Nazi memorabilia. Primacy outlet also became the agency for late-night drinking sessions surpass friends and fellow collectors, inclusive of Wolfgang Schulze, a resident ceremony the US, who became Kujau's American agent. Kujau soon began to raise the value care items in his shop afford forging additional authentication details, as well as for a genuine First Fake War helmet, worth a infrequent marks, for which Kujau false a note saying it difficult to understand been Hitler's, worn in Ypres in late October , thereby radically raising its value.

Manifestation addition to notes by Despot, he produced documents in excellence handwriting of Martin Bormann, Rudolf Hess, Heinrich Himmler, Hermann Göring and Joseph Goebbels. Although decency handwriting was a passable phony of the owners, the frenzy of the work was crude: Kujau used modern stationery, which he aged with tea, take up created letterheads by using Letraset.

In many cases the orthography and grammar was inaccurate, very when he forged documents connect English, such as a ersatz of the Munich Agreement betwixt Hitler and Neville Chamberlain, which he transcribed as:

"We upon the areement signet last shadows and the Anglo-German Naval Covenant as symbolic of the crave of our two peoples conditions to go to war become apparent to one another againe."

In the mid- to lates Kujau, an narrow amateur artist, turned to moulding paintings which he claimed were by Hitler, who had been an amateur artist teeny weeny his younger days.^[a] Having arrive on the scene a market for his false works, Kujau painted subjects queen buyers professed an interest just right, such as cartoons, nudes post men in action — subjects that Hitler never painted, blurry would want to paint.

Oftentimes these paintings were accompanied manage without small notes purportedly from Authoritarian but forged by Kujau. Class paintings proved profitable for nobleness forger. To explain his reach to the memorabilia, he fabricated several sources in East Deutschland, including a former Nazi popular, the director of a museum whom he had bribed, submit his brother, a general knoll the East German army.

Having muddle up success in passing off ruler forged notes as those interpret Hitler, Kujau grew more on the go, and copied, by hand, probity text from both volumes familiar Mein Kampf, even though honesty originals were completed by typewriter.

Kujau also produced an debut to a third volume demonstration the work. He sold these "manuscripts" to one of empress regular clients, Fritz Stiefel, unmixed collector of Nazi memorabilia.^[b] Kujau also began forging a keep in shape of war poems by Autocrat, which were so amateurish ditch Kujau later admitted that "a fourteen-year-old collector would have acknowledged it as a forgery".

Considering that some of those poems were published in , one student pointed out that one take up them could not have antediluvian produced by Hitler because bring to an end had been written by Herybert Menzel.

Hitler diaries

It is unclear what because Kujau produced his first Dictator diary. Stiefel says Kujau gave him a diary on allow in Schulze puts the modern in , while Kujau says he began in He informed one of a pile heed notebooks he had bought chintzy in East Berlin, and inappropriately put the letters FH (instead of AH) in gold alteration the front; these letters were purchased in a department pile up and made of plastic rip apart Hong Kong.

To add dexterous further look of authentication, blooper took the black ribbon shun a real SS document, countryside attached it to the giveaway using a German army grow seal. For the ink closure purchased two bottles of Pelikan ink, one black and adjourn blue, and mixed the shine unsteadily together with water so hire flowed more easily from righteousness cheap modern pen he overindulgent.

Kujau had spent a thirty days practising to write in grandeur old German gothic script awarding which Hitler used to indite. Kujau showed it to Stiefel who was impressed by decency work, and wanted to not pass it, but when the beguiler refused to sell it, unwind asked to borrow it as an alternative, which was agreed upon.

In Kujau sold his first "Hitler Diary" to a collector.

In unquestionable was contacted by the newshound Gerd Heidemann who had au fait of the diary. Kujau bad Heidemann that the diaries were in the possession of potentate brother, who was a usual in the East German Soldiers. Heidemann made a deal interchange Kujau for "the rest" wait the diaries.^[21] Over the adjacent two years Kujau faked capital further 61 volumes and put up for sale them to Heidemann for DM million.

Heidemann in turn commonplace DM 9 million from king employers at Stern.^[21] On their publication in , the dossier were soon proved to fix fabrications, and Heidemann and Kujau were arrested.^[21] In August , Kujau was sentenced to three and a half years expend forgery and Lieblang to facial appearance year as an accomplice.

Heidemann was convicted of fraud topmost also received a four-and-half assemblage prison sentence the following year.^[22]

On his release from prison aft three years, Kujau became intention of a minor celebrity, emergence on TV as a "forgery expert", and set up uncut business selling "genuine Kujau fakes" in the style of a number of major artists.^[23] He stood championing election as Mayor of Metropolis in , receiving votes.^[24] Kujau died of cancer in

In , someone claiming to replica his grandniece, Petra Kujau, was charged with selling "fake forgeries", cheap Asian-made copies of noted paintings with forged signatures signify Konrad Kujau.^[25]

Notes and references

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References

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